Angelwitch is an interesting bar in that it tries to offer something for everyone. From good looking dancers, rock and roll music, competitive pricing, all message board discounts and numerous special events through to friendly management, fruit shakes, frozen margaritas, food from Kokomos, a busy pool table, a large range of Angelwitch memorabilia and possibly the best stocked bar in Angeles, chances are no matter what you are looking for you will probably find it here. Angelwitch is a bar with customer friendly policies and represents in many ways a direct cross between Perimeter Road bars and those of Fields Avenue.

For some reason this bar has a very special place in my heart. It could be because I worked there on and off for many years, or it could be this bar has always had a uniquely friendly feeling almost like a local pub rather than a go-go bar business. Whatever the reason I will probably never know for sure and all I can say for certain like many other people this bar has always been and probably always will be one of my favorites.

Originally this bar was Illusions owned by Rob Williams of Superstar fame. When he built it in 1994 he designed it as a sort of miniature Superstar with an oval shaped stage lower than the rest of the bar and tiered seating resembling a roman amphitheater.

Happy Customers

The Bar

Good Company

Dancers

This was very much a concept taken from Superstar but on a much smaller scale. He even employed Eddy Morris an ex Superstar manager to run the joint.

The tiered seating never really worked as the customers were too far away from the girls and it did not encourage interaction between the girls and the customers. In 1996 Rob sold the bar to Wolfgang of Private dancer fame and moved back to Australia. Wolf renovated the bar making moving the stage and changing the seating to include a comfortable couch against the front wall and 3 rows of elevated couches all facing towards the stage. The bar went through various changes under Wolf including two or three name changes then in 2003 it was sold to Bill and William two English lads supposedly with bar experience in Thailand. It was a rocky road for the English boys and within two years of ownership and various name changes, including the ill Fated Boy’s night out, their partnership had virtually dissolved and the bar was sold yet again this time to Kokomos group and the bars name was changed to Angelwitch.

With the Kokomos group came the trademark inclusions designed at attracting a wider range of customers. The bar was now called Angelwitch reminiscent of the very successful Angelwitch in Thailand. Some minor cahnges were implemented including replacing the couches facing the stage with circular tables. These tables also have poles in the middle to encourage table dancing. There were also a number of innovations which included a frozen margarita machine, fresh fruit shakes, food service from Kokomos, video music clips, plasma screen display monitors and the biggest range of bar merchandise including 5 different types of T-Shirts, beer holders, beer towels and custom made pool cues.

In 2008 Mo sold up his interests in Angeles which included Angelwitch and headed for the greener pastures of Subic. The new owners adopted the policy of when you’re on a good thing stick to it and as a result did little to change Angelwitch except maybe give it a fresh coat of paint, redo the upholstery and place a few more plasma screen monitors around the bar.

The present day Angelwitch is a very popular bar frequented by locals, long term tourists and “newbies” alike. This bar has a loyal following amongst people from all walks of life and continues to grow in popularity despite the continual emergence of new bars in the Fields Avenue area.

Angelwitch is deliberately marketed to attract as large a market share as possible and part of this is the definitive branding and image making they have done for this bar.

They have now placed an emphasis on a diverse selection of rock and roll music played on video and large screen plasma monitors and even gone so far as to employ a rock and roll aficionado manager, a certain AE member, Mr Drummer or Gordy as he is commonly known to the locals. The emphasis on rock and roll music is shown by their logo “the other rock and roll bar” and is complimented by a pro active recruitment program for dancers, an extensive advertising and promotional program, a very popular happy hour which applies to local and imported drinks, a popular pool table, an extensive range of alcoholic and non alcoholic beverages, a customer interactive management team and a strong web presence with the bar offering discounts for all boards.

Because of its long term existence in various guises and under various names this bar has a fond place in many customers memories. This is an old style Angeles bar as is reflected by their mid range and uncomplicated pricing structure along with their emphasis on customer satisfaction. In many ways this bar is a cross between Perimeter Road bars and the commercialized Fields Avenue bars. It has aspects of both worlds and it is one of those bars that has managed to generate a local pub like atmosphere where the guys will go in looking for a girl or at other times go in just to enjoy a few drinks with their mates or the friendly managers.

The bar is laid out as a square room with a comfortable couch running along the front wall. This couch can seat up to ten people comfortably and makes a great area to indulge in a little “touchy feely” with the partner of your choice or simply relax with a nice drink and take in the atmosphere as you watch the bar and everything that happens through the course of the night.

Next to the couch on the far right hand side is the DJ booth with Danny who is most certainly one of the best old style DJ’s currently working in Angeles and the man has a huge music library as well as a comprehensive knowledge of rock and roll videos.

The vast majority of the music is played using DVD’s or video which is visualized on the plasma screen monitors scattered throughout the bar. Personally I am a bit of a music buff and I enjoy going into a girlie bar and listening along with watching one of my favorite bands play however the bottom line for me in any “girlie bar” will always be the girls and sometimes I find the music being played on large plasma screen monitors distracts my attention from the girls.

The Angelwitch stage is along the far right hand side wall and can accommodate up to thirty girls at any one time. This is a decent sized stage which can be seen from anywhere in the bar thus allowing customers perfect vision of the girls available there.

The girls do wear a sort of uniform which includes a T-Back pantie, body hugging shorts and skimpy halter tops. Behind the girls is a large mirror which creates the illusion that the stage is crammed with more girls than there actually are. As with all bars that place an emphasis on playing music for the customer the girls do not exactly get wild or perform any spectacular dance routines however if any bar is getting close to teaching the girls to appreciate and dance to Rock and Roll music it is this bar. In Thailand the girls are bombarded with rock music and as such they learn to dance to it. This is not the case with Filipinas and for that reason I will always believe the best type of music to play in a girlie bar is a mixture of music for the girls to dance to as well as the music the customers like, the only problem being the two types of music rarely coincide. Having said that Angelwitch seems to be carving out a sort of niche market as it sticks to its policy of playing rock and roll for the customers and even the girls are learning to appreciate and dance to it.

The stage is front lit with a series of carefully placed spotlights and back-lit with black lights which will highlight the florescent colors of the girls dancing apparel. This use of black lights combined with spotlights and even strobe lights for special dance numbers represents and amalgamation of the old ways and the news. Back in the nineties most bars used black lights extensively with a few overhead lights embedded in the ceiling. Nowadays more and more bars are utilizing the spotlight approach together with use of the black lights.

In front of the stage are a series of bar stools and a counter top which allows customers to sit within close proximity to the girls whilst enjoying a drink or three. When I first started managing bars back in 1992 I noticed that the majority of customers would sit up the front close to the girls and the father away areas were frequented mainly by Asian customers and those who just wish a little privacy while they communicate with the female companion. On the whole it has been my observation that the Asian customers prefer the more impersonal approach and as such they will tend to place a little distance between themselves and the girls. This is of course a generalization but one which I have certainly found to be true in many of the different bars I have worked in. In Angelwitch they use the chairs by the stage effectively. After the girls finish dancing they have a short break and then are made to come back inside the bar and mingle with the customers. During this time you will often see them using the seats by the stage. This is a clever tactic because it keeps the bar looking busy and it encourages interaction between the dancers and the customers. Another decoration which makes a subtle difference is the plastic flowers. The flowers feminize the room a little as well as adding some colorfulness as they shine under the black lights.

In the middle area are a series of circular tables each capable of seating 5 to 6 people comfortably. These tables feature a pole so the dancers can perform table dances if requested and each table offers an excellent view of the entire stage so customers can at all times see the girls dancing.

These tables are actually very clever because they are perfectly positioned so the customers can get a feel for the bar and at the same time mingle with each other as well as mingling with girls. They are exactly the right distance from the stage allowing the girls to make eye contact with the customers and vice-versa as well as letting the customers soak in the atmosphere of the club which is mostly created by the dancers and their antics on stage.

In the far left hand corner is the very popular pool table. The pool table was originally bought in by Wolfgang who enjoys a game of pool and over the years it has been played on by some of the world very best players and in turn has proven to be a real money spinner as many big spenders have made Angelwitch their home base while they play with the girls, buy ladies drinks and enjoy a game of pool. In the past the pool table has literally saved the bar during the rainy season as it attracts customers who come to drink and play pool at a time when there are few other customers around. Normally people who play pool will buy a drink or two plus a ladies drink and they also make the bar the bar look busy for new customers that walk through the door.

One thing that is a somewhat unique aspect of Angelwitch is its CR. This is situated out back behind the wet bar area and just above the urinals at eye level are a series of sheets pinned to a notice board which contain some absolutely classic jokes. The sheets are changed every two weeks and if you are in the mood for a good chuckle I recommend you read them whenever in Angelwitch.

Angelwitch has arguably the best stocked wet bar in Angeles and chances are whatever drink you want, as long as it’s not too obscure, they will have it. In Angeles the selling of alcohol counts for a significant percentage of the bars profits, the realization of this combined with the fact that Angelwitch has a reputation as a drinking mans bar has made the owners and managers very attentive to their alcohol supplies ensuring their stock is always plentiful and diverse.

Angelwitch has positioned itself as a drinking mans bar and as such it is only natural they should have a large range of shooters available for public consumption. When questioned about his alcohol stocks Drummer proudly informed me this bar had Imported beers, Petron tequila, black Sambuca, a number of Single Malt whiskeys and even Soju from Korea. This bar is also renowned for its shooters and they even have their very own shooter book where customers can choose a particular shot or make their own shooter.

In line with the philosophy of supplying the customer with a diverse range of products and services the folks at Angelwitch have installed a frozen margarita machine There is also a popcorn machine which again is a clever idea because the popcorn makes the customer thirsty and he will drink more.

The ping pong balls originally started in Thailand but over the last few years they have become more and more common in Angeles so much so that nearly every bar now has them. In Angelwitch they have the small bucket of balls which sells for 400piso and the big bucket of big balls which sells for 750 piso.

Adopting the old proven ways of doing things Angelwitch has a large supply of merchandise for sale. This includes beer towels, beer wraps, 11 different designs on Angelwitch T-Shirts, Angelwitch coffee mugs, ashtrays, lighters, beer stines and even custom made pool cues.

The bottom line for any “girlie bar” is always the girls working there and Angelwitch is a classic when it comes to the girls working there. Over the years in its various guises this bar has seen some classic girls ply their trade on its stage and that is still very much the case in todays Angelwitch. There are 3 shifts of girls 4pm, 6pm, 8pm and they have four different types of uniforms in one week.

The girls in this bar are very friendly and it is easy to strike up a conversation with one as they will often mingle throughout the crowded bar rather than disappearing after their shift has finished which is too common place in many bars today. Best of all there is little if no ladies drink pressure here. The girl’s friendly attitude in my opinion is reflective of this bars management style and of the type of customers it attracts.

There seems to be a fairly steady flow of new girls coming in and this is in a large part due to a pro active recruitment policy.

Angelwitch with its emphasis on providing something for everyone and its olden days no frills approach, its mid range pricing, its emphasis on rock and roll music, friendly girls who mingle with the customers, lack of ladies drink pressure, its physical location and above all else customer friendly and responsive management make this establishment in many ways the classic Angeles bar. I have always had a soft spot for this bar and to this day I maintain many fond memories of the girls and the good times and the people I have met in there. As such I highly recommend this bar to anyone reading this report and if you visit here please tell them mjibbo sent you.